The success of a song is as much about the melody as the memorable visuals it creates in the listener’s mind.
The success of a song is as much about the melody as the memorable visuals it creates in the listener’s mind.
As long as he was alive, my father loved AR Rahman’s music the most. He always used to talk about how the melodious Rahman songs (a kuthupattu like ‘pettarap’) have a solid melody base and easy cadence. My dad used to insist on buying Rahman’s albums the day they were released and I had to play all the songs for him, so that he could try and catch the melody of each and prove his theory that a good movie song would be that. Whose foundation is in the melody. It was he who told me that Kirvani and Sivaranjani were Ilaiyaraaja’s favorite ragas, his ‘Shodh’ based on Vividh Bharati and ‘Ungal Viruppam’ on All India Radio.
The longevity of a song entirely depends on its musical merit, which is why we hear some songs even years after their release. Sometimes, the dance moves or visual montages are spectacular, and just the humming of a tune or a sudden image reminds us of the first time we heard the song or saw it on screen.
Anirudh Ravichander. , photo credit: L. Srinivasan/The Hindu Archives
rustic yet sweet
The current Anirudh super-hit ‘Jolly Low Gymkhana’ from the Beast dates back to the 1956 song of the same name – a song that was probably the first in a long line of kuthupattas that gradually developed, eventually cult status in the 80s. Received. The roaring hit ‘Machana Pathengala’ from Ilaiyaraaja’s debut film Annakkili, which was rustic in tune and the lyrics were still melodious. The 1956 ‘Jolly Low Gymkhana’ is from the Sivaji Ganesan-Savitri-Padmini film Amara Deepam. Padmini, by then gaining popularity for her dance moves, plays a gypsy girl in the film and we see her singing and dancing to this energetic number in the film, the first few words of which are equally light-hearted. As in the beast song sung by Vijay. ,
‘Halke’ songs always enjoy unmatched popularity in lyrics, melody and rhythm. In black and white films, a ‘jolly song’ was one where the dance was ‘freestyle choreography’ and, as in the early 80s, there were ‘street dancing’ moves with kuthupattu (Kamalhasan performed it to perfection in ‘Singarisarakku nalla sarakku’). Did with. Khaki from Sattai). In the 90s, songs used to have lyrics that sounded like Gaana (the Tamil equivalent of rap).
Kuthupattas has so far referred to songs on which one can dance in the style that was popularized in the northern Madras environment. Many college cultural events always feature guest performances from such groups, much like rap groups that have emerged from Mumbai’s Dharavi. He was characterized by fast tempo, steady style, and flexible grace. The music was often his own (he played them on a tape recorder he took with him), a rough mix of Michael Jackson beats (mostly from his background score) with Ilaiyaraaja’s violin pieces. Over the millennium, it gave way to Rahman’s notes and popular international rhythms.
Songs in Indian cinema are primarily a tool to carry the story forward or to express emotions. Musicians like MS Viswanathan and Ilaiyaraaja were stars in their own right. It is said that in the 80s, a producer had to first book Ilaiyaraaja dates and then assemble a film around his album. The film used to earn only from audio sales before its release. There were heroes whose careers got a boost only because of Ilaiyaraaja’s music (early films by Mohan, Ramarajan and Vijayakanth).
Ilayaraja. , Photo credit: V.Srinivas Murthy/The Hindu Archives.
music production
Equally, there are film directors who differentiated Ilaiyaraaja’s music, and for whom the composer reserved his best, such as Bharathiraja, Mahendran, Balu Mahendra, K. Balachander and Mani Ratnam. Thalapathy’s song ‘Rakkamma Kaiyya Thattu’ is a great example of how good music and good visuals can make for a great song. The music director is seen as the third most important name after the protagonist and the director, which adds to the profits of the film.
However, gone are the days when movies were built around the concept of “let’s get six songs from the music director and weave a story around it”. Anirudh’s recent chartbusters are ‘Naan Pizai Ni Majlai’ both soft and slow by Vignesh Shivan. Kathuvakkula Rendu Kadhali And ‘Arabic Kuthu’ stronger than Nelson Beast and both crossed 25 million and 220 million views in record time before the film’s release.
A lot comes together for the success of a song. Making room for music and making notes where there was none, then visualizing the tune and song, and finally bringing it alive for the screen is the hallmark of Indian cinema.
a view of Mari 2.
, Photo Credit: The Hindu Archives
Today, this visualization can be either a montage or a choreographed piece. Somehow, the song stays in our heads because of the melody quotient and visual memory. A good example is ‘Rowdy Baby’ from Maari 2. As important as the melody is, it cannot be denied that very often those songs which are universally liked and survive through the ages also add to the story and have a strong vision of a filmmaker behind them. Is.
The author is a content producer, writer, artist and curator.